John Cena | antakalipa

WWE

I love the WWE. As a company wow, they have so much imagination. Vince McMahon did it, he created the perfect company, a company based on his passion. He took this small dream and made it gigantic. Their slogan is “Then, Now, Forever” how fitting. The WWE has been around for generations, it has been popular culture for generations and has had many golden eras. From WCW to ECW to WWF to today’s WWE. It is immensely entertaining. The Kayfabe, the personas, the grand entrances, the music, the commentators – Jerry the King Lawler, Jim Ross, Tazz and Michael Cole, the catch-phrases, the promos, the gimmicks, the emotions they stir-up, the crowd and the talent in the ring. WWE is exciting! Everything is so structured and beautifully packaged. The storylines keep the spectators and audience emotionally attached and attuned. The personas give us an avenue to project our undesirable characteristics and feelings. This is so effective because everyone is repressed and we must not give in to our animal urges because society deems them undesirable and they can get you incarcerated. So, the next best thing in projecting those undesirable qualities is being a Randy Orton fan; a character who is sly, vindictive, sinister and two-faced, who claims to hear voices in his head telling him to do bad things and so he obliges. Randy Orton is unsportsmanlike, he injures his fellow competitors by kicking them in the head thus causing concussions and ending their careers. He once kicked the chairman of WWE Vince McMahon in the head and won the Royal Rumble the next day, guaranteeing himself a spot to headline WrestleMania. And so he was exempted from the repercussions of kicking the founder of the WWE in the head. These are the type of storylines that keep the fans engaged. WWE tackle morality, the subject of good and bad in their storylines and the wrestlers are exceptionally good in communicating this with the audience. Somebody like John Cena was exceptional on the mic. But they don’t just sell morality, they sometimes do unbelievable and the jaw-dropping. In the early 2000’s, Brock Lesnar superplexed The Big Show who weighed in at 500 pounds on the top rope, a move that dismantled the ring. The superplex was forceful and hard that the two wrestlers couldn’t compete anymore, medical assistance was dispatched to assist. We don’t know if WWE planned that or they were just as shocked as the rest of the world. What transpired was a freak of nature – it was like a natural disaster and the images are imprinted on every WWE fan. WWE can be spontaneous and chaos can roam out and throw everything on its head. However, much is controlled through the personas they have created for the wrestlers. They stage confrontations of two personas exhibiting a dislike for one another to garner hype and excitement to sell tickets and get an audience. One persona I loved was that of Eddie Guerrero billed as “Latino Heat”. His gimmick was that of “He lies, he cheats, he steals”, what this gimmick entailed is that he did everything and anything to win a wrestling match. Through this persona, Eddie was unethical and unsportsmanlike, he delivered low-blows to the opponents when the referee wasn’t looking, he hit opponents with foreign objects when the referee wasn’t looking, he raked and blinded opponents, he basically did everything that was morally unjust. Still, the fans loved him. He was one of the staples of the Smackdown brand when it started, along with wrestlers like “The Undertaker” “Brock Lesnar”, “Kurt Angle”, “JBL” and Rey Mysterio. What made Eddie Guerrero special was the fact that he could be a “fan favorite” and later play the “heel”, the heel is someone who everyone hates. Because of this rare ability he was the face of the Smackdown brand. Eddie Guerrero was supremely entertaining. He could captivate the crowd and make them laugh and he could make them boo their lungs out. He was a gem. RIP Eddie Guerrero. The WWE has its own world and they sell merchandise, make movies and generates millions through their trademark brands. They also have development hubs all around the world for aspiring and up and coming wrestlers. The talent they have on their rosters (Raw and Smackdown) are amazing. They are athletic and professional. They look like they love what they do. They are committed. They live the Kayfabe. You can see it on their faces, they are living their dreams. It is a beautiful billion dollar company. I love this company!

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WWE Product

Stacy Kiebler, those legs. God bless the Attitude Era and the Ruthless Aggression Eras. That version of WWE was entertaining. I am in mourning, the product WWE has today sucks. It’s too soft, politically correct and packaged. This “PG family stuff” doesn’t make for good entertainment. It’s a waste of my time. I wish I could rewind to the 90’s and early 2000’s, nothing can beat that WWE. Awesome storylines, controversial takes, groundbreaking revelations, the drama, the story, great wrestling, great gimmicks, great commentary, exciting, believable, entertaining, imaginative, innovative, full of enthusiasm, funny, sexy, a roster flooding with actual charismatic stars and just overall great content. Today’s product makes me sad. Sure they have Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey but that’s ALL they have, that’s not enough. Ronda and Brock while great inside the ring have no microphone skills. Roman Reigns is aided by Paul Heyman. The company has no real stars. Back then they had The Rock, Stone Cold, HHH, Mick Foley, Goldberg, Shaun Michaels, The Undertaker, Kane and they were succeeded by Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle, Eddie Guerrero, John Cena, Batista, JBL, Edge, Randy Orton, I could go on and on and on. The roster had an influx of talent and plenty of stars in the making. It was vibey and unpredictable. Today they have zero stars, literally just Roman Reigns. If your favorite wrestler got an injury and was out for months back then he’d have to start at the bottom when he returned, there was competition. Everyone was hungry. Ideas flowed and there was experiments. Remember the uproar Eugene caused? Some thought WWE took it way too far, certainly a character like Eugene would never see the light of day in 2022. But that’s what made the product great because of storylines and gimmicks like that. The product also lacks sex-appeal, it’s too dull, lazy, repetitive and has lost its showmanship. It’s safe and insipid with no source of inspiration. I don’t like today’s Divas, they are musculine and angry, no feminine essence whatsoever. What’s the use of having Divas in the show if they are bad imitations of the men? I remember a time when we had Trish, Lita, Micki James, Beth Phoenix, Michelle McCool, Sable, Maria, Dawn Marie, Stacy Kiebler and Torrie Wilson. Divas back then were superior, the entertainment value was better, storylines relatable and the matches were more iconic. Today’s segments and promos are uninspiring. The wrestling is awful and the commentary mediocre at best. It’s just not the same without Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler. The enthusiasm is not the same. The crowd interactions are not the same. The credibility and believability isn’t there anymore. It’s like the magic dissipated away. Maybe the Trademarks and Merchandise are selling like hotcakes but what about the product? What about the content? What about the entertainment value? Creatives need to reign again in the company for it to have a great product. The writing has to improve. Stars need to be made and integrated to the show. Showmanship and sex has to return. The “PG family” rating is dragging the show to its grave. It’s hard to get excited about a WWE match. The product is a huge disappointment, it’s been that way for a while.